


Pieces of Us

by Fangirlshrewt97



Series: Nile Freeman's Guide to Down Time with Immortal Warriors [6]
Category: The Old Guard (Movie 2020)
Genre: Attempt at Humor, Basically the team is in a mountain villa and relax, Brother-Sister Relationships, Domestic Fluff, F/F, Family Bonding, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Found Family, Gen, Jigsaw Puzzles, M/M, Sister-Sister Relationship, Team Bonding, Team as Family, and Booker and Quynh are there because I want them to be, just a well deserved vacation, no blood or gore, soft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-31
Updated: 2020-08-31
Packaged: 2021-03-06 23:47:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,120
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26217382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fangirlshrewt97/pseuds/Fangirlshrewt97
Summary: They had actually made them good headway when a cough interrupted them and they both looked at the intruder with a sheepish smile and a deer-in-headlights look. Quynh’s lips were pressed into a thin line but her eyes belied her amusement.“Do you two realize what time it is?”“Um…” Nile started only to be cut off by a “Three forty-five” from Andy.“Right. So what do you think you are doing at three forty-five in the morning?” Quynh asked. “Do not joke with me Andromache. Come back to bed!” Quynh said with, if pressed, Nile would say a pout.Nile put up her hands in the universal gesture for surrender. “I just wanted some water, and saw her sitting here doing this.”“And instead of sending her back to bed, you joined her?” Quynh asked in such an unintentional but uncanny impression of Nile’s mom that she felt a pang in her chest of an ache that was becoming familiar.Basically, the group takes a vacation at a mountain villa and Nile brings a game from her childhood home to bond with her new family. Also, Nile and Quynh snuggle, Andy glares at some cardboard, Nicky and Booker annoy Joe, and they all have ice cream... not necessarily in that order though.
Relationships: Andy | Andromache & Booker | Sebastien & Nile Freeman & Joe | Yusuf & Nicky | Nicolò & Quynh, Andy | Andromache of Scythia/Quynh | Noriko, Joe | Yusuf Al-Kaysani/Nicky | Nicolò di Genova
Series: Nile Freeman's Guide to Down Time with Immortal Warriors [6]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1851712
Comments: 49
Kudos: 292





	Pieces of Us

**Author's Note:**

> Dear Reader,
> 
> Can be read as a stand alone, but I put in a few easter eggs from the rest of the series!
> 
> Whew I had a time trying to get this story done, it just would not wrap up! And then had to do some heavy editing after. I have done my best for doing in-character funny lines and humorous moments, and hope I did them justice. This group fic was a long time coming, and was originally going to be where I concluded the series. But I have loved the response and a couple people even gave me really cool ideas for further fics, so at least for now, I think I will have a couple more additions to this in the future.  
> I hope you enjoy it, and if you do, please let me know with kudos/comments (which can include keyboard smashes, one word comments, or favorite lines!)
> 
> The story is not beta'd, so all errors are my own.
> 
> Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me, I am just borrowing them temporarily. 
> 
> Enjoy,
> 
> Fangirlshrewt97

After nearly six months of back to back missions, the entire team had told Copley they were taking a break and disappeared to different corners of the globe. This time, Andy had taken Nile to Mongolia, wanting to show their youngest the place she had come from so very long ago, and Booker had taken Quynh to Brazil, promising her the best coffee in the world. Joe and Nicky had said they’d tour the Mediterranean for a while. They had originally said they’d all rendezvous in Zurich in a few months, but they had gotten so used to living in each other’s pockets they had lasted all of one month before meeting up in Joe and Nicky’s mountain villa in Uetliberg, a short distance from Zurich.

It was a gorgeous home that looked like it was straight out of a National Geographic, stark white walls with bright red roof, and tinted windows. Inside, the ground floor was an open space concept, an area with several large couches arranged in a semi-square in front of a massive fire place, and an open kitchen with a counter. Wooden floors and wall panelling gave the villa an almost rustic feel while the cast iron chandelier was an unusually expensive decoration that gave the place some personality. The walls were also adorned with artwork from around the world, some originals, some replicas, and many Joe Originals, ranging from the 15th century through the 20th. 

Nile had spent the first few days dragging various members of the team through the various hiking trails close to the villa and to the small town that lay at the foot of the mountains. Winter was starting to set in, requiring them to wear light jackets and sturdy boots, but it was still far enough away they could spend a couple hours outdoors without fear of frostbite. The cold reminded her of home, but the air was so clean, and the streets so quiet, it was impossible to mistake for Chicago.

For the most part, the team settled into a routine quickly, Andy and Quynh waking early and leaving for a morning walk to observe sunrise. Joe and Nick got up next, preparing breakfast, and finishing by the time Nile and Booker stumbled to the kitchen. After breakfast and a round of showers, the team split into pairs and sparred and trained till lunch. Some days Nile and Joe played chess in the outdoor patio, others, Booker and Nile curled up in opposite ends of the couch reading while Quynh sat near Nile making her way through Candy Crush. Dinner preparations rotated, Nile usually tagging with Nicky so he’d teach her cooking, but sometimes, Joe would invite her to bake something. If they weren’t cooking, Nicky and Nile played sudoku races with Andy as their timekeeper.

There was an almost surreal feel to the days, such a break from the violence and blood that filled their missions, Nile pinched herself in the morning to make sure she wasn’t actually dreaming. But of course, perfect days cannot last forever.

About a month into their mountain side retreat vacation, Nile woke up with chattering teeth and no feeling in her toes. Outside her window, the sky was a pale blue, the sun faint and small in the corner. Wrapping her blankets tightly around her, she dug around her wardrobe to find the thick socks Nicky had knit for her, tugging them on before making her way downstairs.

“Andy? Nicky? Joe?” Nile called out as she entered the main living area.

“Over here Nile!” Nicky called out from near the fireplace, and when Nile waddled her way there, she saw the man crouched in front of it, loading logs onto it.

“Nicky? What happened? Why is it so cold?” Nile asked, trying to clench her jaw to minimize the chattering of her teeth.

Nicky turned to look at her, eyes going soft at the sight of the woman. “So sorry bambina. There was a power cut to the town, and we haven’t been here in a couple decades so the generator is not working properly. Joe and Andy are looking at it now.”

Nile nodded. “What about Booker and Quynh?”

“Booker went to get more logs, if the power cut lasts longer, we don’t have enough wood to keep this fire going. And Quynh apparently refused to get out of bed because it was too cold.”

“Wise woman.” Nile mused, making Nicky shoot her a smile as she rearranged the logs. “I’m going to join her.”

“Alright. We can come get you when the food is ready.” Nicky said, standing up, and brushing off the dust from his sweatpants.

“Thanks Nicky.” Nile said, approaching him to give him a quick squeeze and received a kiss to the top of her head before going up to Andy and Quynh’s room.

“Quynh?” Nile called out. She heard a sound from inside, and deciding it meant come in, opened the door, only to find the room empty. She looked at the bed again, stifling a laugh when she noticed the small lump in the center of the bed.

She shuffled forward till she reached the closest edge. “Quynh?” she called again.

“Nile?” she heard a muffled reply.

Nile laughed. “Would you mind some company?”

For a second there was no response, and then the blankets moved before a delicate hand wove it’s way out under the hoard to lift up the blankets a scant few inches. Grinning at the invitation, Nile dropped her own blanket and slipped into the small opening, shuffling under them until she felt another body. She twisted until she was on her side, sighing in relief as the warmth enveloped her enough to feel blood returning to her poor toes.

Booker had told her in too vivid a detail just how much frostbite sucked and she did not care to validate his experience. She rubbed her feet against each other to generate extra heat to them.

“Quynh?”

Dark eyes suddenly popped into her vision as the body in front of her twisted so she could see her friend’s face rather than her raven locks. “It is too fucking cold.”

Nile huffed in agreement. “A-freaking-men.”

Quynh rotated her whole body so she was mirroring Nile’s body. “Reminds me of the sea.”

Nile’s heart broke a little at the admission, but she doesn’t let an ounce of pity cloud her eyes, Quynh was far too strong to deserve it. “Come here.”

Quynh let out a sound of confusion, but Nile reached out to touch her shoulder and tugged the older woman against her. Though she would never admit it out loud, there was a little spark of pride in her every time she stood next to this woman who was as large a legend as Andy but only reached her chin. Not that it didn’t make her the deadliest fighter Nile had ever seen.

Quynh came slowly, letting Nile arrange her until she was tucked under Nile’s chin, one of the younger woman’s arms laying lightly over her shoulders and the other tucked under her own head. Quynh wiggled enough to lay one of her own arms around Nile’s waist, while tucking the other in between them.

“Better?” Nile asks softly.

“Yes.” Quynh says hesitatingly. “Thank you.”

“You’re most welcome Quynh. Nicky said he will come get us when there is some more heat in this place. What do you say we sleep till then?”

“I’d say it sounds like a plan.” Quynh said, voice light with the undertone of mischievousness that was starting to return to her that Nile loved.

Smiling against Quynh’s hair, Nile closed her eyes, feeling sleep dragging her under.

///

An unknown amount of time later, Nile woke to a soft pat to her head, making her jerk her head and dislodge the blankets in the process. Quynh made a soft noise of protest at the sudden rush of cold air into their warm bubble and huddled closer. Nile blearily opened her eyes, she saw Andy sitting by her side. The eldest immortal seemed to be haloed by the bright sky behind her.

“Morning Nile. Sleep well?”

Nile smirked. “Hmm. Stole your girlfriend too.” She lightly squeezed Quynh just to emphasize the point.

Andy barked a laugh and tugged at her braid. “Cheeky brat. Nicky has made food. If you want it, I suggest going down in the next five minutes, as that is how long he will be able to hold of Booker and Joe.”

Nile groaned at the prospect of fighting off those two just to eat her food and moved to extract herself from Quynh’s iron grasp, which took some of her precious minutes. In the end, Nile nearly rolled off the bed, stopped only by Andy’s hand at her back.

“Thanks.” she muttered as she grabbed her blanket from the floor and made her way to the kitchen.

The three men were sitting at the kitchen counter, Joe and Nicky on one side, sitting pressed together whereas Booker was across from them and looking ready to fall asleep on his food. Nile gave him a strong poke to the side that had him jumping out of the chair and glaring at her.

“Don’t fall asleep on the food.” she explained.

Booker growled. “Do that again and I cut off your hand.”

Nile just shot him her most saccharine smile.

Joe let out a snort of amusement, and Nile could see even Nicky’s eyes were lit up in amusement.

“Are you hungry Nile?” Nicky asked, standing up already.

Nile nodded. “Starving.”

Booker continued to mutter something indecipherable in French under his breath while Nicky served her a lunch of boiled rice, a potato based gravy, and a serving of chicken.

“Looked good Nicky.” Nile said.

Nicky gave her a wry smile. “I know it’s not as fancy as I usually make, but there were technical difficulties.”

Nile took a bite of the chicken and swallowed it alongside her moan. “I’m not complaining.”

That had Joe laughing. “Good answer Nile.”

Nile beamed around her mouthful. Once she swallowed she asked, “So, what’s the status update?”

Joe sighed. “Our fuse box is working fine, the electricity from the city is what is not coming up to us.”

“And the generator?”

“It’s been out of use for over 20 years. It is ancient and rusted. But all the parts are there, so I was thinking of going into town and asking around to see how to get it working again.”

“Oh, can I come?” Nile asked. She loved the villa, but she had also been cooped up in here for over a week now and wanted a chance to properly stretch her legs.

“Of course bambina!” Joe told her with a fond wink that had Nile grinning into her food.

///

After lunch, as promised, Joe and Nile set off to town, armed with a list of groceries from Nicky, and a miscellaneous shopping list from the others that included spare pocket knives.

“Do we not have enough knives? We are on vacation, why do we need more?” Nile asked as she tried to decipher Andy’s chicken scratch.

“That woman probably has the most extensive collection of blades ever assembled Nile. And she continues to add. Does that sound like someone who understands the meaning of ‘I have enough blades’?” Joe said as she folded up Nicky’s list. “Do you want to do the shopping together or split up?”

“Considering the size of this list and the fact that the streetlights will probably not be working after sunset, let’s split up.” Nile said as she passed one of the lights.

Joe nodded. They walked peacefully until they reached the edge of the town. “Meet you hear in two hours?”

“Sure!”

Joe held out a fist for Nile to bump. “Good luck.”

Nile snorted. “You too.”

The two hours went by quickly, with Nile flitting from shop to shop and buying everything on the list. She was even able to sneak in a last minute impulse purchase she thought the team might enjoy if she could convince to join her.

Balancing her bags, she ran as fast as she could until she spotted a familiar head of curly hair at the end of the street, stopping only when she reached Joe’s side.

“Sorry.” she panted as she fought to catch her breath.

Joe’s eyes crinkled at the edges. “Got lost shopping?”

Nile gave him a half-hearted glare that had him laughing and trying to tug one of her bags off of her. She batted his hand away. “Your hands are already full. I can carry this stuff. Let’s go.”

Joe laughed again. “As my lady commands.”

///

At the villa, they found their family had migrated to the sofas, Nicky and Booker were playing a game of chess with Joe’s travel chess set on one sofa while Andy and Quynh lounged on the other, Andy half burrowed into Quynh.

“Habibi, how could you betray me like this?” Joe said exaggeratedly as he entered the living room, setting the bags in the kitchen counter before coming to drape himself over Nicky. 

Nile settled her bags beside Quynh and Andy’s sofa before sitting on the floor, leaning into Andy’s side. She felt a tap on the cheek and when she turned, she saw Quynh with her hand holding one of Nile’s braids. At Nile’s nod, she reached for the youngest immortal’s scalp and started to gently scratch it. 

Nicky for his part studiously focused on the board in front of him, entirely ignoring his partner.

Booker leaned back to brace himself on his hands, and smirked. “What can I say? Nicky enjoys playing with me better.”

Joe made a scandalized sound that had Nile cracking up, and even Nicky’s lips quirked, but he maintained his poker face.

“French bastard, I knew it! You have been trying to corrupt my Nicky away from me for 300 years now!” Joe said, leaning heavily into Nicky and curving an arm around Nicky’s shoulders to pull him close.

Booker just snorted when Nicky shoved Joe back before making his move.

“Yes Joe, that is exactly my plan, I have been trying to seduce your great love away from you by courting him with a game he barely tolerates.”

Nile was distracted from Joe’s response with a tug to her braid that had her whipping around to see the delight and amusement shining brightly in the faces of the two eldest immortals. “What?”

“Did you buy me more candy?” Quynh asked.

Nile blinked at her. “Joe did all the grocery shopping, did you add it to the list?”

Quynh shook her head.

“Then I don’t think we have candy Quynh.”

And damn it, a 3000+ year old immortal should not be capable of such a cute pout. Or serious puppy dogs eyes, what the hell?

Nile sighed, “It’s too dark now, but I can go get them tomorrow morning?”

Quynh lit up, nodding her head enthusiastically enough to dislodge Andy, making her grunt. Nile smirked. “Alright, I’ll go tomorrow.”

“Stop trying to steal my wife Freeman.” Andy growled, although the effect was ruined due to half her face being pressed into Quynh’s stomach.

Nile winked at Quynh, who laughed. “Who says I need to try Andromache?”

In response, Andy reached out and gave a sharp tug to one of Nile’s braids, making her yelp. She rubbed at the root of the braid when it was released before jabbing her finger into Andy’s side. This made the woman jump and she used the momentum to pounce on Nile, leading to the pair wrestling on the couch for a bit before it devolved into a tickle fight that had both women out of breath, Nile giggling, and Andy’s shoulders shaking with suppressed laughter.

The fight stopped when they were pulled apart by strong arms wrapping themselves around their shoulders and dragging them away. Nile tilted her head back to see Nicky’s merry face above her. She looked to Andy and saw her being restrained by Quynh and Joe each sitting on one of her arms while Booker put a hand over her ankle for the sake of it.

“So who won the chess match?”

“Booker.”

Nile laughed. “How’d Joe take it?”

“Very personally. Especially after I paid up.”

“You two bet on chess?”

“Nile.” Nicky said with that tone of _obviously_ that had Nile laughing. She had learned soon after Booker had rejoined them that the pair expressed their affection through bets. “Of course we bet on chess.”

“What did Booker ask for?”

Nicky gave her a wicked smile. “A kiss.”

Nile guffawed, glad for Nicky’s arms around her keeping her from collapsing to the floor. As much as Nicky and Booker loved each other through bets, their other favorite pass time was riling Joe up. And Nile sometimes joined. A riled up Joe was good entertainment.

“Kid, what the hell are these?” Andy’s voice suddenly broke through Nile’s laughter, making her look towards the other group who had all migrated back to the opposite couch and were now going through Nile’s purchases. Andy was currently holding the pocket knives Nile had bought.

“Pocket knives? Like you asked?” Nile answered.

“These things look one good stab away from breaking.” Andy said.

“That’s cause they aren’t meant for stabbing.” Nile said incredulously, to which Andy just made a dissatisfied noise.

“Don’t mind her dolcezza,” Nicky said behind her as he released her to make his way to Joe. “Andy didn’t specify what she needed the knife for, so she should be happy with what you got her.”

The last part was aimed at Andy who gave him the middle finger, but Nicky just smiled calmly and tucked himself against Joe, tilting his head for a kiss.

“What is this Nile?” Booker asked her, and she saw he had her impulse purchase in his hands.

She blushed, looking embarrassed which had the others exchanging a look and raising an eyebrow at her.

“It’s a jigsaw puzzle.”

“A what?” Quynh asked as she moved from Andy’s side to take the box from Booker’s hands.

“It’s a type of picture puzzle,” Nile explained as she crossed the room and sat on her heels opposite Quynh. “See the picture on the cover of this box? Inside it is the same picture but cut into lots of small pieces that we then have to assemble.”

“I don’t think we have ever done one of those.” Joe mused.

“No we did. London. 1960s.” Nicky corrected.

“The drug ring.” Booker said, expression clearing up, as though a light bulb had gone off. “That was an ugly puzzle.”

“Hmm. It was of a building.”

“This picture is pretty. Is it the Alps?” Quynh asked as she tapped the cover. It showed a picturesque landscape, with a set of five jagged mountains taking up the top half of the puzzle, the peaks rising to the sky, which was a clear blue with wisps of white clouds. At the foot of the mountains were plains in green and orange with clusters of pine tress and the odd building in the middle. Between the mountains was a gorge with a river flowing between them before disappearing behind a small hill. 

Nile nodded.

“Why did you buy it?” Andy asked, the only one looking at Nile rather than the puzzle.

Nile ducked her head again before clearing her throat. “Once, there was this really bad blizzard in Chicago one winter and it knocked out the power in our whole neighborhood. Dad was still deployed, and it was fall break, so my brother and I were bored. My mom then dug up this old jigsaw puzzle from the basement, something with like 2000 pieces I think, and we spent the rest of the three days it took for the power to be completely restored putting the puzzle together.”

It had been over half a decade since she had been declared dead to her family, and Nile knew it would be easier to hold onto memories if she shared them, but sometimes, like right now, the words lodged in her throat. She didn’t even realize she had started to cry until warm arms enveloped her in a hug, and Nile clutched at Booker’s sweater as she felt Joe rubbing her back and heard Nicky whispering assurances in her ear.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to cry.” Nile said, sniffling and running her sleeve over her nose.

“Never apologize for this ma cherie,” Booker demanded fiercely, making her look him in the eyes. She gave him a watery smile and nodded, receiving a hard press of lips to her forehead. “Never feel like you have to forget your old family Nile. Just don’t make the mistake I did of forgetting this new one loves you just as much.”

Nile hugged him tighter, tucking herself into his neck until her breathing was normal again. She finally pulled away and gave a deep exhale before smiling at the others, receiving fond smiles back.

“So, how would you guys like to try your hand at completing a jigsaw puzzle?”

“It sounds like a good challenge.” Quynh said, a small smile of her own being directed at the box. “1000 pieces seems like a lot to start with though, no?”

Nile shook her head. “If you were doing it alone, then yes probably, but come on, there are six of us, and we are stuck in a mountain villa with nothing better to do. So?”

Instinctively, everyone looked to Andy who met each of their gazes before giving an exasperated exhale. “Sure. Why not?”

This had both Joe and Nile whooping, and Nile scrambled out of Booker’s lap to take the puzzle from Quynh. She tried to rip open the plastic wrapping but when she was unsuccessful, she turned to Andy with a wry grin. “Care to lend me one of those useless pocket knives Andy?”

Andy bared her teeth at her before chucking one of the knives at her, but Nile caught the knife anyways.

As she held the bag of pieces in her eyes, she nearly wanted to laugh at the look of nervousness and apprehension in the faces of her family. Several millenia between them filled with endless war and torture and death, and the thing they were scared of was a jigsaw puzzle.

Nile went to open the bag when a thought occurred to her. “Um guys, I just realized. 1000 pieces makes this a big puzzle.”

The others looked at her in confusion.

“Where are we assembling it? The dining table might not be big enough. And the carpet is too uneven a surface.” Nile explained.

Nicky’s confusion cleared, both eyebrows raising and he clapped his hands. “I have an idea. Joe, come with me!” he said before grabbing Joe by the front of his shirt and dragging him to the back of the house.

When she glanced at the remaining three immortals, they all shrugged. “Alright then?” Nile said.

They heard a small crashing sound from the back of the house before a triumphant sound from Nicky. After a couple minutes, the couple emerged with a giant table between them, pivoting carefully around the dining table and sofas to enter the space between the couches.

Nile and Booker got up to help them set the table down. Only then Nile realized it was a low table like they had seen in Japan. It was a perfect square, made of dark wood with the center of it being inlayed with cream and yellow tiles. She smiled. “Nicky, you are a genius. Where did you even get this?”

Joe beamed while Nicky shrugged, though the tips of his ears turned pink at the compliment. “Yes he is Nile. We had spent some time in Japan alone before we came back to Europe, and had gotten used to the tables there. But since we obviously couldn’t transport one of these back, we decided to build one ourselves.”

Nile’s eyes widened. “You built this? It is beautiful.”

Joe winked at her. “Shall we get started on your puzzle then?”

Nile grinned and took the bag of pieces, cutting it open with the knife before dumping the pieces onto the table.

“Ok, so the easiest way to solve a puzzle is by first creating the frame.” Nile explained as she spread the pieces on the table, grabbing a couple. She spent 10 minutes talking the team through the different types of pieces and giving them tips for solving the puzzle.

The immortals all lapsed into silence except for the crackle of the fire as they divided the pieces between themselves and sorted through the pieces. By the time all the edge pieces had been found, the sun had set and the room’s only sources of light were the blazing fire that Joe and Booker alternated in feeding new logs into, and the old candelabras Nicky had brought out for extra light.

The next hour was spent rearranging the pieces between themselves before they settled at the sides of the table, Nicky and Joe taking one of sides, and Andy and Quynh taking the other, leaving Booker for the bottom and Nile for the top portion.

Andy growled and mumbled as she worked, frustration evident as she was not able to find even two pieces that fit together, even resorting to cursing in a language Nile was sure went extinct a millenia or two ago. Nile exchanged a look with Booker who was looking at the pair in amusement. She was pleased to see he had also gotten halfway through his edge like her.

Nicky and Joe were totally focused on their task and did not even lift their heads up at the commotion. They also looked to have a good chunk of their side done. Pleased with the progress, Nile went back to her pieces, quickly filling out the missing pieces and moving them to the top center of the table. She connected it with the strip Joe and Nicky had already put together, the two men giving her a happy smirk when the pieces made a satisfactory click.

She turned to Andy and Quynh’s side and hid a wince at the pieces that were still laying mostly scattered. Quynh for her part was trying to do a trial and error, connecting all the pieces with the piece in her hand till something clicked. Not a bad idea, but also not a viable method of completing a 1000 piece puzzle. Andy mostly seemed to be trying to glare the pieces into fitting together by themselves. Sighing, Nile went over to Andy and talked her through finding pieces that went together. When Nile turned to the boys, they are all fighting to hide their own grins.

“Come on Andy, you are overthinking this, it’s just a fun puzzle.”

Andy shot her a dirty look before collecting the pieces in Nile’s hands. Nile waited for her to put the pieces together, grinning widely when she manages to do. She also pretended to ignore the self-satisfied curl of Andy’s lips. “There we go, see? I knew you could do it!”

Andy scoffed and shoved Nile back, and the youngest immortal lets herself be manhandled back against the couch.

She sat back and watched her new family complete the edges of the puzzle with a wave of affection curling in her chest has her feeling more warm than the fire they are sitting in front of.

Besides an hour long break in the middle for dinner, the team worked steadily till late nearly midnight, at which point Andy threatened them all to go to bed or face her blade.

///

Nile startled awake at around 3 in the morning according to her bedside clock, but couldn’t figure out what had woken her. She tried to roll over to go back to sleep, only to find it eluded her. After tossing and turning for a good fifteen minutes by her estimation, she threw off the blanket and noted the house was much warmer than when she went to bed. The power must have returned during the night, which meant the heating was back.

Rubbing at her eyes, Nile pulled on a pair of thick wool socks before stepping out of her room to go to the bathroom at the end of the halls. She decided to grab a glass of water before heading to bed, only to freeze when she reached the living area to find a focused Andy hunched over the low table with the jigsaw puzzle, the overhead light turned on.

Moving slowly but still loudly enough not to startle her, Nile grabbed two glasses and filled them with water and went going to sit by Andy, placing one glass a little ways from the pair and drinking from the other.

“Couldn’t sleep?” she asked when Andy just gave her a side glance of acknowledgement.

Andy grunted.

Nile peered at the pieces in front of Andy, wincing when she saw it was the fields. “Andy, can I offer a suggestion?”

Andy gave her a stony glare. “I have faced down armies Nile. I am not afraid of tiny pieces of cardboard.”

Nile sighed. “This isn’t about you being afraid or not capable of something, you are fully capable of doing this. I’m just saying that personally, I’d do the sky first, then the river, then the mountains and leave the fields for last.”

Andy’s lips pursed into a frown as she looked at the pieces in front of her. With a barely audible sigh, she put them all into a pile and moved them back to where they had left them before reaching for the river pieces.

The pair moved the relevant pieces to the center of the frame of the puzzle and started to silently assemble them, Nile subtly handing the pieces Andy needed just to see the curl of satisfaction on her lips.

They had actually made them good headway when a cough interrupted them and they both looked at the intruder with a sheepish smile and a deer-in-headlights look. Quynh’s lips were pressed into a thin line but her eyes belied her amusement.

“Do you two realize what time it is?”

“Um…” Nile started only to be cut off by a “Three forty-five” from Andy.

“Right. So what do you think you are doing at three forty-five in the morning?” Quynh asked.

“The jigsaw puzzle Quynh.”

“Do not joke with me Andromache. Come back to bed!” Quynh said with, if pressed, Nile would say a pout.

Nile carefully did not coo at the scene in front of her.

“Let me just finish this, I will come up!” Andy argued, only to be met with Quynh’s glare which she then turned on Nile.

Nile put up her hands in the universal gesture for surrender. “I just wanted some water, and saw her sitting here doing this.”

“And instead of sending her back to bed, you joined her?” Quynh asked in such an unintentional but uncanny impression of Nile’s mom that she felt a pang in her chest of an ache that was becoming familiar.

She swallowed around the lump and apologized. “Sorry Quynh.”

Quynh gave a big exhale and her shoulders slumped. “I’m not mad Nile. Andromache, you are being ridiculous. It is a puzzle, it will be here right where you left it in the morning, so please, come back to bed?”

Andy went to argue, but Quynh pulled out her ace card, a combination of puppy dog eyes and a bite to her lower lip, that had Nile wincing because damn it was powerful. Andy folded like a house of cards. “Fine.”

Nile helped her put the unassembled pieces into a neat pile before getting up, taking their two empty cups of water to the sink and giving them a quick rinse before heading up to her own room. She settled under the covers with a big smile, and this time, she fell asleep quickly.

///

She only woke up when the sun was already high in the sky, a couple of birds singing outside her window. Stretching in bed, she groaned as her muscles shifted and cracked, melting briefly back into the mattress with the relief. Running her hands over her face, she turned to her clock, sitting up when the clock read 10:00 AM. Swearing under her breath, Nile threw off her covers, rushing to the bathroom to wash up and shower quickly, returning to the room and tidying it up, and arriving downstairs in twenty minutes. She could not remember the last time she had slept in so late since she had joined the team, not including the injuries she had sustained.

Only to freeze at the bottom of the stairs again at the sight of her whole family this time. Hunched over the table completing the puzzle. “Uh…guys?”

Nicky was the one to look at her, sending her a quiet smile as she whispered something to a distracted Joe, pressing a kiss to the side of his temple before joining Nile at the kitchen counter.

“Morning bambina.”

“Morning Nicky. How long have you guys been up?” Nile asked, still unable to take her eyes off the group.

“About 8.” Nicky said.

“You’ve been working on the puzzle for 2 hours already?!” Nile exclaimed.

Nicky bumped his shoulder into hers. “It is surprisingly addictive.”

Nile raised an eyebrow. Nicky sighed.

“Alright, not addictive. But it is like a challenge. And you know none of us like backing down from a challenge.”

Nile mumbled under her breath just how well she knew their depths of stubbornness, passing Nicky to grab a mug and pouring the last of the coffee. She mixed in three teaspoons of sugar before downing it in one go, exhaling heavily as she felt more awake. Nicky just watched her, amused.

“Want me to make something for you?” Nicky offered. Nile shook her head.

“I do know how to make myself breakfast Nicky. Go back to Joe.”

Nicky offered another one of his small smiles, pressed a kiss to the top of her head and went back to the table. Shaking her head at the sight of them, she hid her smile into the coffee mug as she went to check if there were eggs in the fridge. There was one left. Along with a whole chicken. And a rabbit Andy had probably hunted in the forest. Living with immortals could be so goddamn weird.

Nile joined the team after she finished her breakfast, whistling when she saw they had made a lot of headway.

“I am so impressed guys.”

“Give us some credit kid, we have been around for a while.” Andy replied without looking up from where she was trying to finish one of the mountains.

Booker snorted and moved, patting the space he had vacated for Nile. Shooting him a nod, she sank into it. “So, do you want me to work on the fields or the trees?”

“Fields. Nicky and I can finish the trees.” Joe called out as he swapped a piece with Nicky.

///

The team was less consistent in the morning, each member leaving and coming back to the puzzle, but steadily making their way to it enough that by the time they broke for lunch, they were almost three fourths of the way done. Nile left for an hour after to run down to down to buy the candy she had promised Quynh, and an impulse purchase of the team’s preferred pints of ice cream.

The rest of the team had gathered back around the puzzle, working quickly to finish it.

“You know there is a big down side to these jigsaw puzzles though Nile.” Booker said after a few minutes.

Nile raised an eyebrow, “Oh?”

Booker bared his teeth in a wolfish smile. “No way to bet on it.”

The others laughed as Nile rolled her eyes. “Not everything needs to be a bet you degenerate gambler.”

“I like them. They engage the brain and require an eye for detail. Doing jigsaw puzzles of classical artwork would be very entertaining.” Joe said.

“Those exist Joe.” Nile replied.

“What?”

“Jigsaw puzzles of famous artwork. The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Las Meninas, I think I even saw one for Guernica once.”

“Really?” Joe asked, and Nile could see the intrigue in his eyes.

She nodded. “If I come across one of those, I’ll buy one for you.”

Joe gave a hearty laugh and blew her a kiss. “You are too kind to me little sister.”

At one point, Quynh had brought the bag of candy Nile had bought, and was knocking them back one after the other, ignoring Nile’s warning about tooth decay. She was kind enough to offer to share them with the others though.

Joe got up to switch on the radio to an English station, letting the music waft through the room as they worked. With six people working to finish what little was left of the puzzle, they settled into a chaotic order, with the odd sentence being heard over the music every now and then.

“Does anyone have any piece with two protruding sides that has a little house in it?”

“What about a piece with three concave edges, full green, possibly a yellow line near an edge?”

“Can you give me all the dark green pieces you have? I want to finish this hill already!”

“I need burnt orange pieces!”

“Oh there is only one piece missing in the middle of this patch, it will be green with four protruding edges.”

“Habibi, that is the wrong burnt orange.”

“What do you mean wrong burnt orange, there is only one type of burnt orange!”

“Oh habibi…”

“Andy stop throwing the pieces at me, you nearly hit my eye.”

“Pity, I was aiming for your forehead.”

Until suddenly, they were at the last piece.

Nicky picked it up and gave it to Andy, who stared between the piece and the hole in the puzzle for a long minute before shaking her head. She extended it to Nile, who looked at her wide-eyed.

“Oh Andy, I don’t mind, you can place the last piece.”

“You bought the puzzle. You’ve earned the right. I’ll take the next puzzle.” Andy said, adding in a cheeky wink that had Nile blushing.

Nile took the piece from her, rotating the solid green piece before hovering it over the singular hole in the puzzle. She looked at the faces of her family, the anticipation and the excitement at a job well done, hovering long enough that Booker gave her a light punch to the arm.

“Put the damn piece in Nile!”

Laughing, Nile pressed the piece in, feeling her smile grow as it sank perfectly into the picture, completing it.

Joe and Nicky cheered, while Andy and Quynh looked on fondly, and Booker threw his arm around her to pull her in.

“Bravo Nile!”

Nile encircled Booker’s waist with her own arm. “Thanks guys, but it was a team effort.”

“Next time, let’s do an art one!” Joe said as Nicky tucked himself against the taller man.

Nile’s smile stayed the same but there was a mischievous look in her eyes as she hopped up to go to the fridge, retrieving the tubs of ice cream. Only Quynh caught the look, and waited until Nile had come back with the ice cream and spoons to ask.

“Nile?”

“Hmm?” Nile questioned as she passed the vanilla with chocolate chips to Nicky and Joe, the raspberry sorbet to Booker, and gave Andy her double chocolate ice cream before opening her own mint.

“What’s with the look?”

“What look?” Nile asked as she popped the lid on her pint of ice cream.

“The look you got when Joe mentioned doing an art piece as the next puzzle.”

“Oh, just that I’m glad you all liked the puzzle so much.” Nile mumbled before scooping a large spoonful of ice cream into her mouth.

Of course, she might be a decent liar, but Nile lived with people who had been training themselves to read body language and to know when others were lying to them for centuries by this point. She didn’t stand a chance, especially as all the others squinted suspiciously at her too.

Swallowing the mouthful of ice cream, she fiddled with the spoon. “Ok fine, that wasn’t the only reason for the look.”

“Well?” Andy prompted.

“You know how we flew through Rome on our layover to get here?” Nile asked. Andy blinked at the non-sequitar.

“Sure.”

“Since we were flying commercial for once, I used the layover to go exploring around the airport. And found an airport bookstore.”

“Get to the point kid.”

Nile took in a deep breath and exhaled a “Imayhavefounda3000piecejigsawpuzzlethatwastooperfectandboughtithopingtodoitatsomepointduringourvacation.”

Met with silence, Nile quickly tried to stuffed her face with another scoopful of ice cream. Tried being the operative word as Booker grabbed her pint from under her.

Nile squawked. “Booker, you do not get between a woman and her ice cream. Ever.”

“I’ll give it back when you repeat what you just said. At a human speed.” Booker replied, unfazed by her glare.

Relenting, Nile sighed. “I said, I may have found a 3000 piece jigsaw puzzle that was perfect for us, and bought it hoping to do it at some point during our vacation.”

“And what would this perfect puzzle be?” Nicky asked.

Twisting her lips into a smirk, Nile replied. “A complete panorama of the Sistine Chapel.”

Five sets of eyes blinked simultaneously at her, which used to be unnerving as hell, but Nile had gotten used to it.

Suddenly, Joe startled chortling, the laughter seemingly ripped out of him as he tossed his whole body forward, dislodging Nicky in the process. Not that Nicky seemed to mind as his own shoulders were shaking with contained laughter. And Nile was so busy paying attention to them, she completely missed the pillow to the face from Andy.

“Hey!”

“We are not doing the freaking Sistine Chapel.”

“Come on Andy!” Nile whined, and was only mildly surprised when Joe and Nicky joined in her pleas.

“It sounds fun.” Quynh said, making Nile punch the air as Andy cast a betrayed look at the younger woman, who just smiled passively at her.

Booker for his part had sunk back against the couch with a groan, mumbling about needed to stock up on more alcohol.

Nile just settled against him with a smile on her face though, letting the sounds of her family arguing wash over her like a cooling balm. Yeah immortality had some terrible drawbacks, but this right here? It made them all worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> The puzzle the team does if you're curious: https://www.seriouspuzzles.com/coronation-of-the-alps-1000pc-jigsaw-puzzle-by-clementoni/  
> The sistine chapel panorama puzzle: https://www.ravensburger.us/products/jigsaw-puzzles/adult-puzzles/sistine-chapel-17429/index.html
> 
> There we go, I hope you enjoyed this entry, and if you did, please let me know, reading your comments makes me so happy!
> 
> Also, I am probably going to make additions to the series, even if these six were the main ones I wanted to write, I've received some really cool suggestions, so I'll try to write those too.
> 
> And finally, if you want to come chat, you can find me at fangirlshrewt97.tumblr.com!


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